Preparing to Depart for La Paz

This week was mostly about preparing to cross the Sea of Cortez and head to La Paz by way of Muertos.  I feel very fortunate that my longtime friend Curt has agreed to go with me.  He's a great guy and very accomplished sailor.  Of course I also took a little time to do a few of my favorite Mazatlán things for what will likely be the last time.

I went on a little row back into Sabalo Estuary and 

got a few more shots of a heron in flight.

Back on the dock, I was visited by a pair of 

American oyster-catchers for the first time.

I'd seen them on other, semi-abandoned docks

before, but never on an active dock.

They seemed pretty at ease for a while, that is, until

I showed myself.  Then they immediately took off.

With the recent cloudiness, nice sunsets have returned.  This one was

seen right from my dock.

This one was viewed from around the corner near the fishing

charter boats.

A few minutes later

This one, and the following ones in the sequence, were 

all taken the same evening while I sat in Circadian's 

cockpit.

On Wednesday I went with Curt and Mary to Diego's

to see Curt play.

Still, there are things to do when preparing for a passage.

I discovered that a hole in the windvane rudder was

damaged and needed repair so I could tie it up when

it wasn't steering in order to prevent it from 

rattling loudly.

Holding the repair together while the epoxy

putty cures.

Wind paddle and rudder back in place on

the Hydrovane and ready to go.

After five months of sitting, this winch had 

gotten pretty grungy.  Brushing on some

Ospho (phosphoric acid) made a quick

and easy job of cleaning it up.

Back to Mazatlan

I got everything on my list for the States done (see Carol, see doctors, see condo, see Ventura marina, see Mini, buy stuff) and headed back to Mazatlán on Wednesday.  Always culture shock and price shock both ways.  While I enjoyed my visit, it was good to see my cruising friends again, including some I hadn't seen in many months.  But it wasn't long before the boat work started again!  I'm very grateful that Curt is going to help me sail across the Sea of Cortez, but now I've got to get the boat ready for sea as we plan to leave at the next weather window.

I helped Carol get a new sink and cabinet 

for her bathroom.  I also tried to fix the bad

connector for her dishwasher, but the faucet

threads were torn, so the kitchen faucet

 had to be replaced as well.  We decided

to have the plumber do it all in case there

were "issues."

One of the fun things about Los Angeles is

you see all kinds of oddball things.

See what I mean?

There's some good stuff too, like a real deli!

Spring is a good time to be in LA:  the air is clear when

it's been raining, and there are a lot of trees in bloom.

Yup, this is really LA!

I checked in with my old marina in Ventura to make sure

I'm working my way up the waiting list.  Good thing; it's

full!

The new development next to the marina is progressing, 

albeit slowly due to some problems.  It will definitely

change things.

Approaching Mazatlán airport.  Always fun to see the

marina from the air.

There's Circadian!

It was great to have friends on board my first night back:

Curt, Mary and Gracie and Tony and his wife.  I brought

back a new heat exchanger for Tony's engine.  (It's in

the cardboard box on top of the hatch.)  After celebrating

cocktail hour, we all went to get pizza together where

we ran into Mark and Stephanie, other cruising friends

that Curt, Mary and I hadn't seen in some time.  

Always fun!

The next day, Mark was helping Curt wrestle with his 

outboard that wouldn't idle.

Back on Circadian, my dove friend not only was still

around, but was contemplating building a nest in my BBQ.

I quickly secured the cover to discourage it.  After all,

I had just spent two days scrubbing dirt and droppings

off the boat....

Gracie investigating one of the resident iguanas.

He warned her off by puffing up his neck sack:  "I'm 

a badass and this is my territory, so unless you want

to mate, keep your distance!"

California Road Trips

Carol and I went to see the mega-bloom of poppies on Sunday, then Monday and Tuesday I drove up to Benicia and back.  That trip was mostly to take care of some things at my condo, but I also got to see friends Shing and Joanne.  Tiring,but good!

It wasn't surprising that the Antelope Valley Poppy
Preservewas mobbed with people on a Sunday
when the mega-bloomwas making big news and
there are 18 million peop[e within a two-hour
rive.

Nonetheless, it was disheartening to see the lack of
respect for other people as well as the fragile flowers.

Despite the inconsiderate humans, the poppies were truly
spectacular.

By Monday evening I had completed the long drive north
to Benicia.  It's been some time since I've been there,
so it was good to see it still retains its charm.

Canadian geese hanging in the park between the
riverfront and downtown.

Looking toward the Carquinez Bridge.

There are park-like walkways along most of
the riverfront.

Clouds from a passing storm made the long drive back
more scenic, but a lane closure on I-5 created quite a
jam.  I took a few breaks to take photos the scenery,
which helped.

Getting off the freeway in the middle of nowhere can be
pretty nice sometimes.